When Billy looked at the fire in Jah’s eyes, her heart couldn’t help but go out to him. Here was a dude who she had never seen as more than a young reckless nigga who’d probably end up in jail sooner than later. Hearing what he had to say made her question her assessment of his character. When Jah spoke of loving Yoshi, his voice had the same passionate pitch that Sol’s used to. There was no faking that.

“Jah,” Billy began, “I don’t know if I should even be telling you this, but if you’re keeping it a hundred about what you’ve told me, you might just need to know. I just need your promise that you won’t wild out and make the situation worse.”

“Billy, what are you trying to tell me?” he asked.

“Yoshi was raped the other night.” Billy told him the full story of what had happened to Yoshi, just as she had told it to her, leaving out the names of the culprits. She had to stop a few times and compose herself, as even recounting it hurt. By the time she got to the end of the story, Jah’s face was stained with tears.

“How? Why?” he asked, barely able to get the questions out.

“I’m not gonna go into details with you, Jah, because I know how you are. Just know that the matter is gonna get handled.”

“Billy, can I see her … please?” he pleaded.

She thought on it for a minute. Yoshi was still broken up about the whole ordeal—physically and emotionally—and not really ready to receive anyone but her girls and her family. The only reason she even tolerated Marcus was because he was footing the bill. Still, Jah was a man in love and chances might’ve been that Yoshi felt the same. It was a good possibility that seeing Jah might help with her recovery process.

“Jah, if I take you to where Yoshi’s staying, do you think you can keep from upsetting her?”

“Word to everything I love,” he said. “Yo, all I wanna do is make sure she’s okay. I just wanna see her for a minute and I’m gone, Billy.”

After grabbing a few things from Yoshi’s, Billy and Jah hopped in a taxi and headed out to Queens. Marcus had a two-bedroom apartment he kept out that way but hardly stayed in, and he’d offered it to Yoshi while she recovered. It was in a secluded area and the grounds were patrolled 24/7. Even if Marcus hadn’t been hovering over the girls like a mother hen, they would’ve been safe.